User:Catluvr222/Community-based participatory research

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A CBPR project starts with the community, which participates fully in every aspect of the research process. "Community" is often self-defined, but common definitions of community include a geographic community, a community of individuals with a common problem, or a community of individuals with a common interest or goal. CBPR encourages collaboration between "experts" and communities, provided that the researchers are committed to sharing leadership and producing outcomes that are usable to the community they intend to collaborate with.

^ DONE v WORK IN PROGRESS

Equitable partnerships require sharing power, resources, knowledge, results, and credit. Mapping the groups that make up a community can reveal power relationships and create opportunities for relationship building. Ideally, stakeholders should be from different levels in communities to implement a variety of changes at different levels for greatest impact. Policies that impact community issues should be identified, along with individuals and groups responsible for implementing these policies). The next stages of CBPR include problem definition/issue selection, research design, conducting research, interpreting the results, and determining how the results should be used for action.

CBPR interventions can take many forms, including media or other educational campaigns, subsidized medical testing and healthcare programs, establishment of quality standards for healthcare services, bonuses for healthcare providers for referring patients to appropriate services. Projects have also provided training to youth to learn how to educate and advocate for change in their communities.

CBPR differs from traditional research in many ways. One of the principal ways in which it is different is that instead of creating knowledge for the advancement of a field or for knowledge's sake, CBPR is an iterative process, incorporating research, reflection, and action in a cyclical process.